Cutting and creasing press



Sept. 22, 1959 A. F. sHn-:LDs CUTTING AND CREASING PRESS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June l5, 1954 BY l sept. 22,1959

A, F. sHlELbs CUTTING AND CREASING PRESS Filed June l5, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN V EN TOR.

United States Patent tice Patented Sept. 22 19159` CUTTING AND. CREASING PRESS Albert Frank Shields, Forest Hills, N.Y., assignor to S & S Corrugated Paper Machinery Co., Inc., Brooklyn, N.Y., a corporation of New York Application .lune 15, 1954, Serial No. 436,937

11 Claims. (Cl. 9.3-58.3)

My present invention relates to cutting and creasing presses and more particularly to feeding means for the cutting and creasing press which will make it possible to feed sheets from a stack placed at the feed end of the machine and to receive the sheets in stacked,` individual or feathered condition at the delivery end of the machine.

Cutting and creasing presses are known which utilize essentially a die in which appropriate blades for cutting and for creasing are placed, the said die cooperating with the pressure member which is movable towards and away from the die so that a sheet placed between the die and the pressure member Iwill be cut and creased in accor ance with the positioning of the Various blades.

Application Serial No. 454,776, tiled September 8, 1954, issued as Patent No. 2,776,610 and assigned to the assignee of this invention, shows a cutting and creasing press in which the die member is arranged in the machine in a horizontal position with the blade projecting downwardly therefrom and a quadrant acting as the pressure member is rolled with respect to the die after a sheet has been placed between the quadrant and the die.

My present invention relates in one aspect thereof to a novel means for operation of a platen. One of the major problems in cutting and creasing operations is the simplification of the control of the sheet. It is desirable for eflicient operation that the sheets be not handled individually but be fed from a stack into the mechanism. It is also desirable that the delivery end of the machine be entirely automatic, and it therefore becomes necessary that the timing of all of the elements from the stack to delivery be closed integrated. i

The major problem that has arisen in` prior cutting and creasing presses is the control of the movement of the sheet to be cut and creased at the various points between the feed section and the delivery section. Various methods have been utilized including feed slats for feeding the sheet into the press `and stripping members for pulling the sheet from the press; manual placement of the sheets in the press and removal therefrom; feed., means which in various ways positions the sheet into the press combined with suction means for removing the sheet from the press.

In no case has full control of the sheet been maintained throughout the entire operation by a single member which engages the sheet prior to` its entry into the press, remains in engagement with the sheet during operation of the press thereon, and draws the sheet from the pressimmediately subsequent to the operation thereon and delivers the sheet to an appropriate delivery belt, stack or other means.

The primary object of my invention is the provision of novel means for engaging a sheet to be operated on in a cutting and creasing press prior to the entry of the sheet into the cutting and creasing press, the said means drawing the sheet into the press and remaining in engagement therewith during the operation of the press,

the said means thereafter drawing the Sheet out of the press to the delivery end of the machine.

A corollary object of my invention is the provision of control means for the sheet to be moved into and through a cutting and creasing press where the control means engages the delivery end or leading end of the sheet and remains in engagement therewith at all times, from; prior to the cutting and creasing operation through the cutting and creasing operation until after the withdrawal of the sheet from the cutting and creasing elements.

While quadrants for use as pressure membersv in cutting and creasing presses are known, my invention has for another object the provision of novel operating means` for a cylindrically curved pressure member where the pressure member need not necessarily be a true quadrant although it should be geometrically some part of a cylinder.

The foregoing and many other objects of my invention will be apparent` in the followig` description and drawings in which:

Figure 1 is, aside elevation in schematic form of my novel cutting and creasing press.

Figure 2 is a schematic detail of the feeding member or slat of my invention show-ing the same at the point of initial engagement with the sheet.

Figure 3 is a view corresponding to that of Figure 2 showing another position of the elements at thepoint of initial engagement. i

Figure 4 is a schematic perspective of my novel cutting and creasing press` showing at the left hand end of the ligure, the side elements. in the, position of Figures 2 and 3, showing at the center of the figure the feed elements in the position they occupy during the cutting and creasing operation, and showing the same feed elements at the right hand end in the position they occupy at the delivery portion of the operation.

Referring first to Figure 1, my novel cutting and creasing press comprises a plurality of sections which are here referred to as the stack delivery section 10, the uncut blank feed section 11, the cutting and creasing section 12, and the delivery section 13. The, stack feed section 10 comprises a bed plate 20. having an adjustable side gauge 21 and an adjustable front gauge 22,.` The` front gauge 22 is so arranged that a gap 23:.` is provided between the bottom end of the front gauge 22 and the` bed plate 20 of the stacking device, the said gap being adjusted to have a width greater than the thickness of any single sheet in the stack but less than the thickness of any two sheets in the Stack..

Thus when the feed slat 25 of the stacking device 10 engages the rear edge of the lowest sheet in the stack on the bed 20, it will push this lowest sheet out of the gap 23, while the front gauge 22 will hold back the upper sheets.

For this purpose, the thickness of the operating `edge of the feed slat 25 is somewhat less than the thickness of the lowest sheet in the stack. The feed slat 25 is carried by a platform 27 which is operated back and forth by the crank 28 on the shaft 29 connected by links 30 and 31 to the pivot 32 on the feed slat operating platform 27, the pivot 34 between links 31 and 30 being controlled in their movement by link 35 se` cured at one end to the pivot 34 and at the other end to the stationary pivot 36.

The crank 23 is driven by appropriate connection not shown to the motor shaft 40 of motor 41 at a desired speed to perform the feed operations at intervals as required by the remainder of the machine as hereinafter pointed out. The motor shaft 40, since it drives and controls the drive of all of the other elements of the machine as hereinafter pointed out, also by reason of is connection to crank shaft 29 and crank 28 can also,

by appropriate gear ratios, be made to time the operation of the feed slat 25 to initiate the forward cycle at the appropriate instant.

The particular form of the stack feed device forms no part of the present'invcntion here and therefore has been described schematically only since the feed mechanism 10 is more fully described in issued -Patents No. 2,336,507 and No. 2,583,712, and therefore requires no further description here.

The sheet, once it is fed from the bed 20 of the stack feeding device 10, is moved between the feed rollers 50, 51 which are also operated in a manner not shown from the motor shaft 40. The feed rollers 50, 51 serve to ensure that the sheet, no matter how short it is, will be transmitted from the stack feeding device 10 to the feed belts 53 and 54. The feed belts 53 and 54 are operated by drive rolls 55 and 56 respectively connected also in a manner not shown but readily understood to the motor shaft 40 by gears or preferably by chain and socket connections, the connection to the single control member 40 ensuring synchronism.

As a matter of fact, as is well known in the art, and as is suggested by the patents above mentioned, a single chain may be used from a sprocket on motor shaft 40 to a sprocket on crank shaft 28, a sprocket on one of the feed rolls 50 and a sprocket on one of the belt rolls 56.

The sheet, once it is delivered from the stack feeding device 10, is positioned forward between feed rolls 50, 51 between the adjacent runs of belts 53 and 54 which are biased towards each other by pressure rolls 57, 58 to feed the sheet towards the cutting and creasing section 12. The sheet, at the cutting and creasing section 12, is fed into a slat member 60a shown in highly schematic form in Figure 1, but shown in detail in Figures 2, 3 and 4. The slat member 60a is so arranged that it is provided with a pair of jaws which are open to receive the sheet, the slat being stationary at the feed end of the cutting and creasing press. After the sheet is inserted in the jaws of the slat 60a, the jaws close and the sheet is drawn into the cutting and creasing press by the movement of slat 60a to the right with respect to Figure 1. This operation is broadly described at this point so that the general operation will be understood, owing to the fact that a specic description of the cutting and creasing section 12 per se is here appropriate.

The cutting and creasing section 12 comprises a die 65 supported in any appropriate manner on the under side of flat form 66 which is carried by the cross head 67 which in turn is supported by posts 68, 68 on the sides of the machine. To this extent the die corresponds substantially to the similar member shown in the U.S. application Serial No. 454,776, filed September 8, 1954, issued as Patent No. 2,776,610 and assigned to the assignee of this invention. .The die 65 is, of course, provided with cutting and creasing blades 70 projecting from the under side thereof. A presser quadrant 80 is supported beneath the die. The term quadrant is here used although the pressing surface 81 of the member 80 is not truly a quadrant, being here shown as extending over a section of approximately twenty degrees.

For this reason, the center of rotation of the sector or quadrant presser member 80 may be located at a very substantial distance below the floor on which the machine is mounted. Thus, taking by way of example, the height of the surface 81 above the floor 84 as approximately thirty-six inches, the center of curvature of surface 81 may be as much as one hundred twenty inches below that surface and therefore as much as seven feet below the floor level. For this reason it is highly impractical to actually pivot the presser member 80 on a stationary pivot on the machine while nevertheless it is necessary to cause the presser member to rotate about the center of curvature ofrits pressing surface 81.

Therefore, opposite ends of the presser member are provided with rollers 90, 91, see Figure 4 as well as Figure 1, resting on the pairs of cams 92, 93, the cams 92 and 93 being mounted on the shafts 94 and 95. Shaft 94 is provided, as seen in Figure 1, with the gear meshing with the gear 101 on shaft 102. Shaft 102 carries the pulley 103 connected by the belt 104 to pulley 105 on motor shaft 40 of motor 41. Gear 100 also meshes with gear on shaft 95 of cam 93. Consequently, the rotation of the motor shaft 40 causes the cam shafts 94 and 95 to rotate through the belt, pulley and gear system above described.

The cams 92 and 93 are out of phase although they each have the same characteristics so that the simultaneous rotation of the cams will cause an oscillating pivoting of the presser member 80 so that its pressing surface 81 will rotate about its center of curvature.

Cams 92 and 93 are in the positions shown in Figure l prior to the feeding of a blank into the cutting and creasing press. The clockwise rotation of cam 92 accompanied by a counterclockwise rotation of cam 93 through a single cycle in a clockwise direction raises first the right hand end of the pressure member so that its surface 81 pushes the sheet into the die and then progressively as succeeding elements of surface 81 towards the left are raised against the die until the left hand surface is pushed against the die. Completion of the operation or single cycle of cams 92 and 93 replace the presser member 80 in the position shown in Figure l.

To ensure that appropriate clearance will be provided for movement of the sheet between the die and the pressure member, cam 93 is provided with recess 115 so that in the position of the elements shown in Figures 1 and 4, the surface 81 of presser member 80 will drop away from the die to provide a suicient gap for movement of the sheet therebetween. This will also occur at the completion of a pressing operation when recess 116 of cam 92 moves opposite roller 90. Thus the presser member may operate to provide two pressing cycles for each cycle of operation of the cam, the sheet being drawn in relatively rapidly while the presser member 80 is disengaged from the die 65. s

The machine is provided at its delivery end with a supporting post carrying the frame 131. Frame 131 carries side frame members 132 on opposite sides of the machine, the said side frame members extending up to and beyond the area of the press. Frame 131 carries shaft 135 on adjacent opposite ends of which are mounted the sprockets 136. Sprockets 136 on each side carry chains 137, 138. Supported across the chains at appropriately spaced intervals are the slat members 140. The slat members 140 are essentially channel members of U- shaped cross section, the exact arrangement of which will be hereinafter described. The slat members are provided laterally with pin extensions 143 carrying rollers 144 which ride in the curved tracks 146 on the inner surfaces of the opposite frame members 132.

Consequently the chains 137 and 138 are supported Vat the right hand end on the sprockets 136 but over the rest of their course are supported by the engagement of the rollers 144 in the tracks 146, the said tracks being curved at 146a on each side at the left hand end of the chain course. The chain is driven by means of a connection to shaft 95 of cam 93 driven by gear 110 through gear 100 and the belt and pulley 104-103 from the motor 41. Consequently the drive of the chain is exactly synchronous with and under the control of the operation of shaft 95 which also controls the cycle of movement of the presser member 80.

The function of the chain is to move the slats from a sheetcapturing position to a second position where the slat pulls the sheet into the cutting and creasing press and then to a third position where the slat pulls the sheet to a delivery. step. At each position, the slat must be held stationary so that the desired operation may be performed. Consequently, the movement of the chain is not a continuous one, but rather a regularly interrupted movement with the interruptions of movements taking place so that the slats will be halted in each case at the desired point while nevertheless the chain movements and hence the slat movements occur exactly in synchronism with all the other elements of the machine.

The take olf of the drive for the chains and the slats from the drive for the presser member ensures this synchronism. The shaft 135 is provided at one end with a gear 150 connected to the shaft 135 through an overrun ning clutch 151 of well known construction and shown schematically in Figure 4. The overrunning clutch 1 is so arranged that when the gear 150 is driven in the direction indicated by the arrow 154, the shaft 135 will be driven in that direction but when the gear 150 is driven in a direction opposite to that indicated by the arrow 154, the shaft 135 will not be driven.

The gear 150 is engaged with the rack member 160 on the oscillating arm 161, the lower end of which is connected by the pin 162 to the end of link |163 which is stationarily pivoted at 164 on the frame of the machine. Cam operating shaft 95 for operating one end of the presser 80 has a crank 166 connected by pin 167 to one end of link 168 which is connected by the pin 169 to approximately the center of the link 163. Consequently as the shaft 95 rotates, the movement of the crank arm 166 in one direction will cause the arm 161 to move upwardly and in the other half of the cycle of rotation of crank arm 166 which results in movement of the crank arm 166 in the other direction, it will cause the arm 161 to move downwardly.

When the member 161 moves downwardly, it drives the shaft 135, the sprockets 136, the chains 137, 138 and the slats 140. When the arm 161 moves up, all of these elements stand still. Consequently, the drive when the member 161 moves down, corresponds to that portion of the cycle when the pressing member 80 is disengaged from the die 65 while the portion of the cycle when the presser member 80 engages the die 65 corresponds to that portion of the cycle when the arm 161 carrying the rack 160 moves up.

In order further to ensure that the shaft 13S will not drift around when the overrunning clutch is operating in the non-engaging direction, the shaft 135 is provided with a circular member 180 having a detent 181 in which a spring biased detent roller 182 may snap to maintain the shaft 135 detent in its stopped position. The operation of rack 160 down and to the left in a direction with the overrunning clutch engaged to drive the shaft 135 will exert sufhcient force to drive the roller 182 out of the detent 181 and permit the sprocket to rotate with the shaft 135 in the appropriate direction; the reversal of movement towards an up position of the rack 160 should occur and the machine is set so that it will occur when the detent roller 182 snaps into the detent 181 so that the sprockets 136 and the chains 137, 138 and the slats 140 will remain stationary.

The function of the slats is to provide a set of gripping jaws into which the paper sheets to be cut and creased will be fed between belts 53 and 54 so that these jaws will grip the leading edge of the sheet and pull the sheet in approximately timed relation through the various phases of the operation. Each of the slats as shown particularly in Figure 2, is provided with a plurality of forwardly projecting (that is, projecting to the left with respect to Figure 2) roller jaws 200. These jaws are rigid with and fixed with respect to the slat body 140; they constitute a plurality of spaced separate units between which the units of the stop element hereinafter described may be interdigitated.

Each of the lower jaws 200 coacts with an upper jaw 201; each of the upper jaws is essentially a leaf spring mounted at 202 on the upper surface of each of the slats -140 parallel to and overlying the respective lower jaws 6 200 and biased by its construction so that the teeth 203 of each of the upper jaws 201 will ordinarily tightly engage `the teeth 204 of each of the lower jaws 200. Each of the jaw combinations 2.00, 201 is provided with a tongue member 206, the plurality of tongue members` used in connection with each of the slats being rotatably supported on a common cross shaft 210. Each of the tongues: 206 is provided with a surface 212 which may be brought to bear against the under side of the upper spring jaw 201 to raise it. Each of the tongue members 206 is essentially a lever, theextension 214 of which on the other side of the pivot 210 of the tongue 206 is provided with a depressor roller 216.

It will now be obvious that when the roller 216 is pushed down,` the tongue 206 will rise from the dotted line position shown in Figure 2 to the solid line position shown in Figure 2 and the teeth 203, 204 will be separated by reason of the raising of the upper jaws 201.

Consequently, one of the functions of my device is to move the slat body 140 of the slat combination 60` to the position 60a of Figure 1 and Figure 4 and to open the jaws so that the sheet as it is pushed out by the belts 53, 54 will be pushed into the opened jaws. The next operation then requires that the jaws be closed to engage the leading edge of the sheet. IIt is, however, necessary that the sheet be brought to an exactly accurate stop position in the jaws so that the blades of the cutting and creasing press will be in exact registry with the leading edge of the sheet.

`For this purpose, il provide stop fingers 250` mounted on lever 215 which in turn is pivotally mounted on the pivot shaft 252. The stop fingers 250 carry secured thereto the lower guide plate 253 individual to each stop finger. The jaws 203, 204 connected to the main body 140 of the slat 60 are spaced so that as the slat 60 cornes around the curve 146e, the jaws 203-204 will be .interdigitated with the stop lingers 250 and will come to rest in the position shown in Figures 2 and 4 with the stops spaced to the right of the teeth of the jaws.

Consequently, when the sheet 9 to be die cut is fed by the belts 53, 54 between the teeth 203, 204 of the jaws 200-201, the sheet 9 will be brought to a stop at the stop member 250 which exactly predetermines the stop position of the sheet with respect to the jaws. The slat unit 60 including its main body 140 and all of the elements connected thereto are halted at this time by reason of the fact that rack during this operation is moving up.

`It is necessary, however, to open the jaws just before the sheet 9 is fed therebetween. For this purpose at the position at which the slat assembly 60 will stop at position 60a, a jaw operating system 2.70 is provided. The jaw operating system comprises a jaw opening lever 271 pivotally mounted on shaft 272 with individual operating levers 271 for each of the rollers 216. The normal position of the lever 2711 is that shown in the dotted lines of Figure 2 and the solid lines of Figure 3.

The lever 271 is provided with a downwardly directed extension 273 adapted to engage the roller 216 when the slat assembly 60 cornes to a halt with the roller 216 exactly below extension 273. When the slat 60 comes to the position 60a with the jaws closed, the jaws are interdigitated with the stop fingers 250 and roller 216 underlies extension 274. Link 275 connected by pin 27610 lever 271 is pulled down by means of lever 278 connected at one end by pin 279 to link 275 and stationary pivot on shaft 280 at the other end.

The lever 278 is moved to the down position by rotation of cam 282 against the bias of compression spring 283. The operation of shaft 284 of cam 282 is synchronized with the rest of the machine by an appropriate connection between cam shaft 284 and gear .100 or with the motor of the machine. When the slat assembly has stopped at position 60a, the operation of the cam pushing down lever 278 and pulling down link 275, pulling down lever 271, depressing extension 214 of tongue 206 to raise the tongue 206 'to raise the jaw 201 and thereby open the jaws to receivegthe sheet which is now synchronized to feed into the jaws against the stop 250. Since the slat body 140 is mounted on the opposite rollers 144, itV may pivot under this pressure to put the jaws out of line.

1T o avoid this pivoting, the slat body 140 is provided with an extension 300 directed oppositely to that of jaw 200. As the jaw opening lever 271 moves down, the lever V278 pulling on link 301 pulls down end 302 of lever 303, rotating it clockwise around'its pivot 304 and raising end 305 of lever 303 against the under side of extension 300. The upward force of end 305 on extension 300 thus counteracts the undesired possible rotational effect of the downward force of lever 271 and the jaws, while opened, are maintained in proper orientation.

As soon as the leading edge of sheet 9 has entered the jaws against :the stop 250, the jaws should close and thereafter the slat 60 may move to the right with respect to the Figures.

Prior to the movement to the right, however, it becornes necessary 'to remove the stop fingers 250. For this purpose, link 310 is connected by pivot 311 to stop carrying member 251 and at its opposite end is connected by pin 312 to the end of lever 313 which is also pivotally mounted on shaft 280. A cam 320 on shaft 321 operated by any appropriate connection of shaft 321 with, for instance, gear `100 in timed relation to the rest of the machine, will operate to move the lever 313 and hence the stop carrying member 251 downwardly immediately after the leading edge of sheet 9 has reached the stop iingers 250 and either at the same time or an instant later than the jaws 200 and 201 close together.

The chains 137, 138 are timed by crank member 166 to begin to move just after the jaws have closed and the stop fingers 250 have been removed. It is desirable, in addition to providing a bottom guide 253, for the paper, to provide a top guide 325 so that even warped sheets may be controlled in their entry into the jaws by the chamfered surfaces 25301 and 325a of the guides. It may also be deisrable to remove the guide 325 from controlling position when the stop fingers 250 and the guides 253 are removed.

For this purpose, the top guides 325 are pivotally mounted on the common pivot 330 and have extensions 331 beyond the pivot 330 connected by pins 332 to links 334 which in turn are connected by pins 335 to the levers 313. It will be obvious now that, as the levers 313 move down to pull the stop lingers 250 and the bottom guards 253 down to the position shown in Figure 3, the same operation will cause the top guides 325 to rise. By this means, the leading edge of the sheet 9 is fed to an exactly predetermined position into the stationary jaws 200, 201. The jaws are closed and then the slat 60 comprising the slat body 140 and the jaws 200, 201 is pulled to the right by the chains 137, 138 to pull the sheet 9 into a position between the guide 65 and the presser member 80.

The lever 313 and member 251 have at times been referred to as single members and have at times been referred to as plural members. It will be clear that each of the stop fingers 250 may be connected to individual levers 251 which must be appropriately integrated together or may be connected to a single lever 251. Likewise, a single lever 313 may be used to operate all of the stop lingers 250 simultaneously from a single cam 320 or individual levers operated by a long cam roller 320 rather than an individual cam may be used. Whether one or the other expedient will be used will be determined by the relative size of the machine and the desired weight and strength to be given to the parts; the principle will be the same whether individual levers are integrated for simultaneous operation or a single lever carries the plurality of fingers.

' When the slat 60a moves to the position 60h of Figure 4 owing to the downward movement of rack 160, the rack 160 will reverse its operation, the chains 137, 13S will be stopped and the slats will be stopped at position 60]) and the paper sheet will have been inserted between the presser member and the die 65. The presser mem-` ber 30 may now be operated to squeeze the paper up on the die.

Twoproblems arise:

(l) It must be possible for the paper to be moved upwardly onto two die blades without losing their engagement with the jaws of the slat and without being broken at the point of engagement; and

(2) After the paper has been squeezed onto the die, it must be peeled off before the slat can pull the paper away. For this purpose, I provide a means for lifting the slat up at position 60b and the paper is squeezed onto the die and pulling the slat down and thereby peeling the paper oif the die after it has been squeezed onto the die and before the slat begins to move.

Primarily, this is performed by the mechanism shown at 340 of Figure 4. The mechanism at 340 of Figure 4 provides a pair of opposite stop pins 341 mounted in appropriate vertical slats 342 and connected at their lower ends by pins 343 to levers 344, levers 344 at opposite sides (the far side not being shown) being integrated for simultaneous operation. The cam 350 is so arranged that the shaft 351 is operated in synchronism with the machine by an appropriate connection to, for instance, gear 100. The cam 350 is so arranged that it permits the compression spring 352 to drive lever 344 and stop pins 341 up just before the chains 137 and 138 are intended to stop and it will drive the stop pins 341 down just before the chains 137, 138 are intended to move.

Consequently, as the sla-t 60 moves from the position 60a to the position 60b, the stop pins 341 are moved up to stop position just before the slat reaches the position 60h so that the slat 60h will come against a posi-tive stop at the stop pins 341. This will occur simultaneously with the reversal of movement of the rack 160 from the downward direction to the upward direction and furnishes an additional safety measure for ensuring that the chains and the slats will stand still at the right time.

The stop pins 341 thereby ensure accurate registry of the blank with the die, the registry of course having been initially determined between the blank and the slat by the stop iingers .250 at position 60a. That is, iirst, exact registration between the blank and the Slat is obtained at position 60a, and second, exact registration of the slat with respect to the die is obtained at position 6011, thereby assuring exact registration of the blank with the die when the slat has reached position 6017.

lt is now necessary, during the pressing operation as previously described, to drive the slat upwardly to prevent the blank from being broken. For this purpose a pusher pin 400 is provided, mounted in the vertical guide 401 beneath the body 140 of slat 60. The lower end of pusher pin 400 is connected by pin 402 to lever 403 which lever is spring biased upwardly by spring 404 and con- -trolled in its downward and upward movement by cam 410 on shaft 411, which shaft is driven in any appropriate manner in synchronism with the machine, for instance, from gear 100.

When the slat 60 is halted by stop pins 341 and immediately prior to the operation of presser 80, the movement of cam 410 to the position shown in Figure 4 causes the pusher pin 400 yto move up, raising the entire slat 140. The track 146 is recessed upwardly at 146i corresponding to position 60b to permit the slat to be raised. En this way the blank is raised at one end just prior to the operation of the presser, the right end of the blank ybeing raised to the highest position the sheet'will reach, thereby preventing breaking of the sheet.

On completion of the pressing operation, the operation of cam 410 lowers the pusher pin 401 permitting the slat l 60 at position 60h to drop and peel the sheet off the die.

9. if the weight of the slat 60 and the tension on the chains 137, 138 are not sufcient to do this, stationary leaf spring. members or other biasing means at position 601) may be utilized for this purpose.

It is. desirable to provide every means to ensure accurate and absolute registry of the leading edge of the sheet with respect to. the die. For this reason, in addition to the pusher pin 400, the lever 403 when it is raised also rotates upwardly the end 4,10 of bell crank lever 411 around pivot 412 by means of connecting link 413 to move the front stop member 415 against the side of the slat body 140 opposite` to that engaged by stop pins 341. This ensures that as the slat is raised, it will be squeezed between stop elements 415 and 341 on opposite sides to an exact predetermined registered position.`

After the presser operation has occurred, the cams 410 and 35.0l operate to lower pusher pin 401 from stop 415 and back stop 341 while at the same time as soon as stop piu 3.41 has dropped below the level of slat body 1,40, the rack 160 reverses its operation from an upwardly directed movement to. a downwardly directed movement to cause the chains 147, 148 to. move again. This downwardly directed movement is completed when the slat 60 reaches the position 60C which is the deli-.very position.

At this time the rack .160 has completed its downward chai-n moving motion and has begun to reverse with the chain standing still. The chain is held stationary first by the fact that the overrunning clutch 151 does not permit transmission of movement to the sprocket shaft 135 and second by reason of the fact that the stop pins 341 have come into operation with respect to the slat at posiion.- 60h.

t Thus in every stopped position of the chains 137,'138 there should be. a slat at position 60a, a slat at position 60.17, and a slat at position 60e. Position 60e is the positionl for delivery of the blank, that is, for the release of the blank from the jaJws 200;-201 where the blank is dropped on delivery belts 450 which may be coritinuously operated by belt roller 451 from any appropriate drive portion of the machine, the blank being; delivered when the belt moves ina direction along the longitudinal` axis of the machine outwardly from `the delivery end of the. machine. The delivery belt 4.50V may of cou-rse move sideways to deliver the blank laterally.. The corresponding, blank may then be delivered by the belt, if desired, tothe stacking device. or stack feed hopper of any other machine such as for instance, a folding and taping machine, a folding and gluing machine, or a folding-stitching machine.

The means for operating the slat jaws 200, 201 for opening the jaws at position 60e to perm-it the blank to: drop out onto delivery belt 450 is identical in conformation and operationV with the. means for opening the jaws. at position. 60a. That is,members 478, `475, 471, 501- and 505. and 482 operate in` exactly the same manner a-s the previously described members 278, 2.75, 271, 3'01-1 and 305 and 282` at position 60a. This operation results in release of the leading edge of a blank from the jaws, the. said blank now having been cut and creased, the blank now falling by gravity ontoy the delivery belt 450.'.

By this means therefore, the blank is fed into a slat which is designed to pull the blank through the machine, the said slat being stationary with its. jaws open when the blank is fed? into the jaws, the jaws` being interdigitated with stop iingers` tol predetermine exact registry of the blank with the jaws; the blank isthen pulled by the slat and the now closed jaws to a position` where the blank is betweenthe, presser member and the die; the slat is stopped' and' raised as the presser member pushes the sheet up onto the die; the slat is then lowered to peel the sheet olf` the die and is then moved with its. jaW still closed to a. delivery position. where it is stopped, pulling the blank with it; the jaws4 are then opened at the delivery position, the blank drops out onto a delivery belt and the operation is completed.

Exact registry of the blank is maintained at all tinies with the slat and exact registry of the slat with each of thepositions and especially with the pressing position is maintained bothl by the stop member 341 including the front stop member 415 and the detent member 181-- 182 which ycontes into operation when the rack 1160 is moving in the non-driving direction.

A simpliied means is therefore provided for automatically feeding sheets from a stack in timed relation to all elements lof the cutting and creasing press through the cutting and creasing press to the delivery position. Once the machine is set up and registry obtained, only unskilled labor need be used to load the stacking section 10 at one end and carry away the sheets from a delivery belt 450 at the other end.

The stop fingers 250` may be made longitudinally adjustable on their support members` 251 so that the amount of bite of the sheet in the jaws may readily be adjusted to obtain` the desired registry.

In the foregoing, I have described my invention only in connection fwith a preferred illustrated embodiment thereof. Since many v-ariations and modications of my -invention should now be obvious to those skilled in the art, I prefer to be bound, not by the descriptions herein, but only by the appended claims.

I claim:

l. In a cutting and creasing press for sheet material, said press. comprising a curved pressure member adapted to raise the sheet against a die, cam means for imparting a rocking motion to said pressure member, gripping means for engaging the leading edge of a sheet prior to its entry into the press and for removing the sheet from the curved pressure member of the press, driving means for transporting the sheet through the press, means for stopping the forward motion of the sheet during the pressing operation, the said driving means being continuously connected to the gripping means, the said gripping mens remaining continuously in engagement with the leading edge of the sheet during the transport of the sheet through the cutting and creasing press.

2. A cutting. and creasing press comprising a stack support, a die support adapted to carry a die and a pressure member positioned below and operable against a die on said die support; cram` means for imparting a rocking motion to said pressure member; said cani means being operatively positioned to support said pressure member; said cam means being` constructed to journal the movement of said pressure member, sheet conveyance means between said stack support and said die support and pressure member; means for feeding a sheet from the bottom of the stack to said conveyance means; said conveyance means moving said sheet toward said die support and pressure member; a movable gripping member comprising a plurality of complementary stationary movable jaws for engaging the leading edge of the sheet as it approaches said die support and pressure member; means for halting said gripping means at a position before the point of entry of the` sheet between said die support and pressure member; means operable when the leading edge of said sheet registers with said gripping member to cause said gripping. member to engage the leading edge of the sheet; means for thereafter moving said gripping member in a plane parallel to said die support toV draw said sheet between said die and pressure member; means for stopping said` gripping member and` said sheet at a predetermined position of registry between said sheet and said die; meansy for thereafter operating said pressure member to press said sheet on4 said die; means for thereafter moving said gripping member to draw said sheet to a position free of said die and away from' the space between`- the` die and pressure member; meansfor thereafter halting saidgripping member and-.sheetat a point where'the sheet is clear of the space` 11 V between said die and pressure member; means for thereafter releasing said sheetfrom said gripper member.

3. A cutting and creasing press comprising a stack support, a die support adapted to carry a die and a pressure member positioned below and operable against a die on said die support; cam means for imparting a rocking motion to said pressure member, sheet conveyance means between said stack support and said die support and pressure member; means for feeding -a sheet from the bottom of the stack to said conveyance means; said conveyance means moving said sheet toward said die sup-- port and pressure member; a movable gripping member comprising a plurality of complementary stationary and movable jaws for engaging the leading edge of the sheet as it `approaches said die support and pressure member; means for halting said gripping means at a position before the point of entry of the sheet between said die support and pressure member; means operable when the leading edge of said sheet registers with said gripping member to cause said gripping member to engage the leading edge of the sheet; means for thereafter moving said gripping member in a plane parallel to said die support to draw said sheet between said die and pressure member; means for stopping said gripping member `and said sheet at a predetermined position of registry between said sheet and said die; means for thereafter operating said pressure member to press said sheet on said die; means for thereafter moving said gripping member to draw said sheet to a position free of said die and away from the space between the die and pressure member; means for thereafter halting said gripping member and sheet at a point where the sheet is clear of the space between said die and pressure member; means for thereafter releasing said sheet from said gripper member; a continuous member supporting a plurality of said gripping members; said gripping members being spaced so that, when one gripping member is at a halted position to engage the leading edge of a sheet fed toward the cutting and creasing press, a second gripping member is at a halted position to permit the sheet engaged thereby to be operated on by the pressure mem-' ber and die and a third gripping member is at a halted position at which the sheet is to be released.

4. A cutting and creasing press comprising a die support adapted to carry a die and a curved pressure member positioned below and operable against a die on said die support; cam means for imparting a rocking motion to said pressure member, gripping means comprising a plurality of complementary stationary and movable jaws for engaging the leading edge of `a sheet as it approaches said die support and pressure member; means for halting said gripping means at a position before the point of entry of the sheet between said die support and pressure member; means operable when the leading edge of said ysheet registers with said gripping member to cause said gripping member to engage the leading edge of the sheet; means for thereafter moving said gripping member in a plane parallel to said die support to draw said sheet between said die and pressure member; means for stopping said gripping member and said sheet at a predetermined position of registry between said sheet and said die; means for thereafter operating said pressure member to press said sheet on said die; means for thereafter moving said gripping member to draw said sheet to a position free of said die and away from the space between the die and pressure member; means for thereafter halting said gripping member and sheet at a point where the sheet is clear of the space between said die and pressure member; means for thereafter releasing said sheet from said gripper member.

5. A cutting and creasing press comprising a die support adapted to carry a die and a curved pressure member positioned below and operable against a die on said die support; cam means for imparting a rocking motion to said pressure member, gripping means comprising a plurality of complementary stationary and movable jaws for engaging the leading edge of `a sheet as it approaches said die support and pressure member; means for halting said gripping means at a position before the point of entry of the sheet between said die support and pressure member; means operable when the leading edge of said sheet registers with said gripping member to cause said gripping member to engage the leading edge of the sheet; means for thereafter moving said gripping member in a plane parallel to said die support to draw said sheet between said die and pressure member; means for stopping said gripping member and said sheet at a predetermined position of registry between said sheet and said die; means for thereafter operating said pressure member to press said sheet on said die; means for thereafter moving said gripping member to dra'w said sheet to a position free of said die and away from the space between the die and pressure member; means for thereafter halting said gripping member and sheet at a point where the sheet is clear of the space between said die and pressure member; means for thereafter releasing said sheet from said gripper member; `a continuous member supporting a plurality of said gripping members; said gripping members being spaced so that, when one gripping member is at a halted position to engage the leading edge of a sheet fed toward the cutting and creasing press, a second gripping member is `at a halted position to permit the sheet engaged thereby to be operated on by the pressure member and die and a third gripping member is at a halted posit-ion at which the sheet is to be released.

6. A cutting and creasing press comprising a die support adapted to carry a die and a curved pressure member positioned below and operable against a die on said die support; cam means for imparting a rocking motion to said pressure member, gripping means comprising a plurality of complementary stationary and movable jaws for engaging the leading edge of a sheet as it approaches said die support and pressure member; means for halting said gripping means at a position before the point of entry of the sheet between said die support and pressure member; means for preparing the gripping member for receiving the leading edge of the sheet; a stop member for intercepting the leading edge of said sheet and halting it in predetermined registry with the gripping member; said gripping member engaging the sheet after the sheet engages the stop member; the stop member disengaging the sheet; means operable when the leading edge of said sheet registers with said gripping member to cause said gripping member to engage the leading edge of the sheet; means for thereafter moving said gripping member in a plane parallel to said die support to draw said sheet between said die and pressure member; means for stopping said gripping member and said sheet at a predetermined position of registry between said sheet and said die; means for thereafter operating said pressure member to press said sheet on said die; means for thereafter moving said gripping member to draw said sheet to a position free of said die and away from the space between the die and pressure member; means for thereafter halting said gripping member and sheet at `a point where the sheet is clear of the space between said die and pressure member; means for thereafter releasing said sheet from said gripper member.

7. A cutting and creasing press comprising a die support adapted to carry `a die and a curved pressure member positioned below and operable against a die on said die support; cam means for imparting a rocking motion to said pressure member, gripping means comprising a plurality of lcomplementary stationary and movable jaws for engaging the leading edge of a sheet as it approaches said die support and pressure member; means for halting said gripping means at a position before the point of entry of the sheet between said die support and pressure member; means operable when the leading edge of said sheet registers with said gripping member to cause said gripping member to engage the leading edge of the sheet; means for thereafter moving said gripping member in a plane parallel to said die support to draw said sheet between said die and pressure member; means for stopping said gripping member andsaid sheet at a predetermined position of registry between said sheet and said die; said gripping member being movable with the sheet in a direction normal to the plane of the sheet as the pressure roller engages the sheet; means for thereafter operatingy said pressure member to press said sheet on said die; means for thereafter movi-ng said gripping member to draw said sheet to a position free of said die and away from the space between the die and pressure member; means for thereafter halting said gripping member and sheet at a point where the sheet is clear of the space between said die and pressure member; means for thereafter releasing said sheet from said gripper member.

8, A cutting and creasing press comprising a die support adapted to carry a die and a pressure member positioned below and operable against a die on said die support; gripping means for engaging the leading edge of a sheet as it approaches said die support and pressure member; means for halting said gripping means at a position before the point of entry of the sheet between said die support and pressure member; means operable when the leading edge of said sheet registers with said gripping member to cause said gripping member to engage the leading edge of the sheet; means for thereafter moving said gripping member in a plane parallel to said die support to draw said sheet between said die and pressure member; means for stopping said gripping member and said sheet at a predetermined position of registry between said sheet and said die; means for thereafter operating said pressure member to press said sheet on said die; means for thereafter moving said gripping member to draw said sheet to a position free of said die and away from the space between the die and pressure member; means for thereafter halting said gripping member and sheet at a point where the sheet is clear of the space between said die and pressure member; means for thereafter releasing said sheet from said gripper member; a continuous member supporting a plurality of said gripping members; said gripping members being spaced so that, when one gripping member is at a halted position to engage the leading edge of a sheet fed toward the cutting and creasing press, a second gripping member is at a halted position to permit the sheet engaged thereby to be perated on by the pressure member `and die and a third gripping member is at a halted position at which the sheet is to be released.

9. A cutting and creasing press comprising a die support adapted to carry a die yand a curved pressure member positioned below and operable against a die on said die support; cam means for imparting a rocking motion to said pressure member, gripping means comprising a plurality of complementary stationary and movable jaws for engaging the leading edge of a sheet as it approaches said die support and pressure member; means for halting said gripping means at a position before the point of entry of the sheet between said die support and pressure member; means for preparing the gripping member for receiving the leading edge of the sheet; a stop member for intercepting the leading edge of said sheet and halting it in predetermined registry with the gripping member; said gripping member engaging the sheet after the sheet engages the stop member; the stop member disengaging the sheet; means operable when the leading edge of said sheet registers with said gripping member to cause said gripping member to engage the leading edge of the sheet; means for thereafter moving said gripping member in a plane parallel to said die support to draiw said sheet between said die and pressure member; means for stopping said gripping member Vand said sheet at a predetermined' position of registry between said sheet and said die; means for thereafter operating said pressure member to pr's said sheet on said die; means for thereafter moving said gripping member to draw said sheet to a position free of said die and away from the space between the diev and pressure member; means for `thereafter halting said gripping member and sheet at apoint where the sheet is clear of the space between said die and press-ure member; means for thereafter releasing said sheet from said gripper member; avcontinuous member supporting a plurality ofv saidgripping members; said gripping members being spaced so that, when one gripping member is at a halted positi'onto engage the leading edge of a sheet fed toward the cutting and creasing press, a second gripping member is at a halted position to permit the sheet engaged thereby to be operated on by the pressure member and die and a third gripping member is at a halted position at which the sheet is to be released.

l0. In a cutting and creasing press for sheet material, said press comprising a curved pressure member adapted to raise the sheet against a die, cam means for imparting a rocking motion to said pressure member, gripping means for engaging the leading edge of a sheet prior to its entry into the press and for removing the sheet from the curved pressure member of the press, driving means for transporting the sheet through the press, means for stopping the forward motion of the sheet during the pressing operation, the said driving means being continuously connected to the gripping means, the said gripping means remaining continuously in engagement with the leading edge of the sheet during the transport of the sheet through the cutting and creasing press; said rocking motion being characterized in that said pressure member is in a raised position while being rocked in a first direction, during which said sheet is pressed against said die, and said pressure member is in a lowered position while being rocked in a second direction, opposite to said first direction, during which a cut sheet is being removed from said press and an uncut sheet is fed into said press.

11. A cutting and creasing press comprising a die support adapted to carry a die and a curved pressure member positioned below and operable against a die on said die support; cam means for imparting a rocking motion to said pressure member; gripping means comprising a plurality of complimentary stationary and movable jaws for engaging the leading edge of a sheet as it approaches said die support and pressure member; means for halting said gripping means at a position before the point of entry of the sheet between said die support and pressure member; means operable when the leading edge of said sheet registers with said gripping member to cause said gripping member to engage the leading edge of the sheet; means for thereafter moving said gripping member in a plane parallel to said die support to draw said sheet between said die and pressure member; means for stopping said gripping member and said sheet at a predetermined position of registry between said sheet and said die; means for thereafter operating said pressure member to press said sheet on said die; means for thereafter moving said gripping member to draw said sheet to a position free of said die and away from the space between the die and pressure member; means for thereafter halting said gripping member and sheet at a point where the sheet is clear of the space between said die and pressure member; means for thereafter releasing said sheet from said gripper member; a continuous member supporting -a plurality of said gripping members; said gripping members being spaced so that, when one gripping member is at a halted position to engage the leading edge of a sheet fed to-ward the cutting and creasing press, a second gripping member is at a halted position to permit the sheet engaged thereby to be operated on by the pressure member and die and a third gripping member is at a halted position at which the sheet is to be released; said rocking motion being characterized in that said pressure member is in a raised position while being rocked in a rst direction, during which said sheet is pressed against said die, and said pressure member is in a lowered position while being rocked in a second direction, opposite to said rst direction, during which a cut sheet is being removed from said press and an uncut 'sheet is fed into said press.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Meisel f Jan. 9, 190() Kuster May 19, 190,8 Clark July 30, 1912 Bobst Oct. 14, 1941 Belluche Nov. 11, 1941 Bobst Mar. 25, 1947 Larsson Feb. 21, 1956 

